Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hey all-

I have wanted an albino redtail for quite a while now, and I think I may pick one up by this summer. I do have some questions for those of you who have them. Could you all enlighten me as to the differences in strains, the deal with the major health issues I have read about, what to look for in a juvi, etc? The lowdown on albino boas overall! I want to make sure I pick the absolute best animal, since it will be a pet, not a breeder. I am not interested in any albino morphs such as Snow or Sunglow, so you don't need to go into those. What colors do you look for? Is there anyway to tell how a hatchling will look as an adult by coloring/markings? Are some breeders reccomended for these, or are they bred with enough frequency now that many people have nice specimens. Likewise, I am not interested in paying more just for a breeder's name, but only of it reflects in the appearance of the snake. Lastly, for a hatchling or slightly larger, it seems that $1000 is the going rate, give or take a bit. Is this correct, so I won't be ripped off? Please fill me in.

thanks much,
Brian

There are only a few different strains of basic albinism, the major 2 are Sharp and Kahl, named after the people who introduced them to the mainstream public. Both types run off a different recessive trait, so breeding a Sharp to a Kahl results in all normal looking boas het for both strains. There are also T albino's which look markedly different than the T-'s, but they cost a ton.

There are more Kahl's out there than Sharp's, and the price reflects that. Going rate for a Kahl is around $1000 shipped, but I've seen them as low as $875 in the last year or so. The Sharps tend to have a little more color, but most adult albinos end up a fairly uniform yellow/orange color. Sunglows retain their intense red patterns instead of washing out. And snow's have no pigment, leaving an absolute white/silver animal. If I had to picture an "albino" in my head before learning about the genetics behind it, a snow is what I would think of.

Health problems generally aren't any worse than any other morph. Most major breeders have outbred their stock to several different bloodlines, so their babies are as healthy as any other type. Albino is a popular breeder morph, especially since other more desireable morphs also produce albino offspring, so you should be able to choose from numerous breeders. I'd suggest checking out the BOI at faunaclassifieds.com to check out the history of any particular breeder you choose.

Hi-

Thanks for all the info! I have not seen too many Sharp strain, and I am not a fan of the T albinos. IMO, they looks like super hypos to me ,and not the classic albino look I like. So, I have seen a few albinos retain a good deal of pattern as adults, but is there really anything to look for in a baby when purchasing? Or do you just pick the one that looks attractive to you, and assume it will end up looking like most others?

Brian

You can get a stripe line Albino they generally hold most of there color and pattern into adulthood where normal Albino's tend to fade out you will probably pay a little more but its worth it good luck Scott Mid Atlantic Morphs

This is a striped line Albino she is 20 Months old

Hi-

What is a stripe line albino? Does that refer to the genetics, or the breeder history?

Brian

BTW, that's a great looking snake!

Brian

Stripe line Albino refer to genetic stripe blood line the original snakes that produced stripes had great color and that has been past down through their decendents. The snake that is in the earlier post is het for stripe but the do not have to be het for stripe to look that good just have the blood line in them. Scott Mid Atlantic Morphs

This is a baby Striped Albino

Awesome! Who sells them? How much more do they tend to cost?

Brian

We have some for sale now Albino's het stripe for around $1500.00 Pete Kahl sells them also as well as alot of other people you can find them on the boa classifieds I would recommend that you make sure you are getting stripe line a lot of people use stripe line as an adjective to discribe how good they think their Albino looks but it may not be form the blood line if they are not het stripe expect to pay about $100 to $200 more than a regular Albino good luck in your search Scott Mid Atlantic Morphs

This is a male Albino het stripe

Thanks for the info! When I decide to get one, I will look for that line. Do you think you will have some available by the summer, as I can't get one just yet?

Brian

We probably will we are breeding for them Scott Mid Atlantic Morphs